US Ch. Rd5: Kamsky pessimistic

For the sixth consecutive year, the best chess players in the U.S. have gathered in Saint Louis to fight for the title of U.S. Champion and U.S. Women's Champion. GM Gata Kamsky is defending his title while recently anointed grandmaster Irina Krush is looking for her sixth title at the 2014 U.S. Women's Championship. The events are being held simultaneously from May 7 through May 20 at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis (CCSCSL). The games start each day at 1 p.m., with every move broadcast live and discussed by the powerful commentary team of GMs Yasser Seirawan, WGM Jennifer Shahade and Maurice Ashley on the official web site.

Round 5: Irina Krushing; New Winners Shuffle Standings

By Brian Jerauld

Four-time champion Gata Kamsky walked through another uneventful draw on Monday afternoon – his fourth split in five rounds – while Varuzhan Akobian, Alejandro Ramirez and Daniel Naroditsky each gained traction in the standings by notching their first wins of the tournament. Afterward, nodding to the competitive 2014 field and expressing frustration with his current inability to win, Kamsky admitted: “Probably you’re going to see a new U.S. champion this year.”

Samuel Shankland held top seed Gata Kamsky to a 31-move draw

Men results of round five

Aleksandr Lenderman (4.0/5), who collected three wins through the first four rounds, drew for just the second time this U.S. Championship on Monday against Sergey Erenberg, yet continues to set the pace by a full-point. Kamsky, Akobian, Alex Onischuck and Timur Gareev share second place (3/5); Ramirez and Naroditsky lurk with 2.5/5.

Men's standings after five rounds

Varuzhan Akobian’s often straightforward, bend-but-don’t-break style had produced four consecutive draws and may have kept him jogging along in the tournament’s early going, but it would ultimately leave the No. four seed slow on any intentions to make a run for the national title. Round five made it clear that the 30-year-old planned on opening up his stride.

U.S. Juniors Closed Championship winner Daniel Naroditsky knew his position was familiar, just not on the board. Naroditsky last played Ray Robson in the 2011 U.S. Championship – at the same venue, in the same round, and with the same color – and on Monday it proved to bring the same result. Naroditsky won as black in the fifth round to serve Robson his second consecutive loss. “I was a little nervous, especially with Ray, who is known for his opening preparation,” Naroditsky said. “When he confidently plays a novelty, and it looks pretty dangerous, then I’m immediately on my heels. But there’s no magic in chess, he didn’t refute the Ruy Lopez, so I just gathered myself and found a way out of it.”

More accurate was that Ray Robson got himself into it, sending his rook astray in
an endgame and losing it inside the black camp.

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Women's Championship

While the U.S. chess king questioned who might bear his crown next, America’s queen began resizing hers. Irina Krush (above right), seeking a three-peat and her sixth title, showed no inefficiency in collecting wins and grabbed control of yet another U.S. Women’s Championship race. Krush rolled on Monday, stomping out Camilla Baginskaite’s Nimzo-Indian to take clear first in the 2014 event with 3.5/4. Anna Zatonskih (above far left), who entered the day tied for first, lost pace after narrowly escaping with a draw against Viktorija Ni and now holds clear second with 3.0/4. Tatev Abrahamyan and Ashritha Eswaran trail in third with 2.5/4.

Women's standings after four rounds

WGM Camilla Baginskaite has done well in keeping her half-point from Irina Krush’s grasp in past women’s championships, including a 2010 matchup that settled in a 12-move draw-by-repetition, a relationship that prompted a look ahead in the schedule by the reigning queen.

“That was one of the things I noticed when I got the pairings: that I was white against Camilla,” Krush said. “I have made a couple draws with her in these championships with black, and I had to play pretty sharply in order to win the games I’ve won. She has a lot of experience and she’s a solid player, so I thought it was a good thing to get white against her. This win was a little bit different from what I usually get, because I don’t get to win so stylishly so often.” Indeed, Krush looked formidable on Monday, tearing open Baginskaite’s Nimzo-Indian and forcing resignation after 23 moves in dominating fashion.

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2008 and 2010 Czech Women's Champion Katerina Nemcova defeated Sabina Foisor in round four

FM Alisa Melekhina was quite lucky to survive an endgame against...

... NM Ashritha Eswaran, the 13-year-old sensation of this event

The video coverage of the US Championships is very comprehensive

A view in the control center for the multimedia and Internet broadcasts

Report: Brian Jerauld + ChessBase, photos by Lennart Ootes

Links Official tournament site All men's games in PGN All women's games in PGN The games are being broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download a free Playchess client there and get immediate access. You can also use ChessBase 12 or any of our Fritz compatible chess programs.